Newton issue could spawn a tumultuous bowl season

FILE - This Nov. 6, 2010, file photo shows Auburn quarterback Cameron Newton stretching prior to the start of an NCAA college football game against Chattanooga at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. The Auburn Tigers found themselves defending Newton for the second time in five days, this time adamantly sticking up for the Heisman hopeful in the wake of allegations of academic cheating when he was at Florida. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)
— AP

FILE - This Nov. 6, 2010, file photo shows Auburn quarterback Cameron Newton stretching prior to the start of an NCAA college football game against Chattanooga at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. The Auburn Tigers found themselves defending Newton for the second time in five days, this time adamantly sticking up for the Heisman hopeful in the wake of allegations of academic cheating when he was at Florida. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)
/ AP

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Sordid allegations are piling up around the Auburn quarterback like so many autumn leaves, and the increasingly wobbly presumption of his innocence threatens to bring bowl season even more conflict, confusion and consternation than usual.

Imagine a BCS Championship Game overshadowed by concurrent NCAA and FBI investigations of one of the most prominent participants. Imagine Auburn running the table with a potentially ineligible player and the fallout that might cause on other campuses. Imagine Cam Newton following so closely in Reggie Bush’s footsteps that he sinks in the same slime.

This is the nightmare scenario of college football 2010, a “huge concern” in the estimation of one bowl official, and one that grows more vivid and more ominous with each passing news cycle. With two games remaining in its regular season, unbeaten Auburn has climbed to No. 2 in the BCS standings thanks to a breathtaking transfer quarterback who has raised as many red flags as referees’ arms.

Hard to see how this serpentine story ends with “happily ever after.” Harder to see how the situation can be cleaned up soon enough that it won’t leave a blot on the bowls.

Thursday, recruiter Kenny Rogers, a former Mississippi State football player, told a Dallas radio station that he heard Newton’s father put a six-figure price tag on his son’s services in a conversation with MSU coaches last November. Former Mississippi State quarterback John Bond says he is scheduled to meet with the FBI next Tuesday concerning his claim that Rogers sought payment in Newton’s name. Wednesday, Mississippi State issued a statement confirming that it contacted the Southeastern Conference in January regarding “an issue” relating to its recruitment of Newton.

Saturday, Auburn plays host to Georgia, presumably with Cam Newton still calling signals. Either Newton is the victim of an elaborate conspiracy or Auburn is so bedazzled by his brilliance that it has failed to seriously consider his credibility.

“I think it’s really saddening that people are messing with Cam down there,” said former Auburn star Marcus McNeill, the Chargers’ offensive tackle. “Regardless of what he’s done in the past, he’s really exuded a level of maturity at Auburn that nobody can even compare to.”

McNeill said he would attend Saturday’s Auburn-Georgia and plans to talk to Newton, “just to make sure his head is right so he can continue to play as well as he is.” Like many Auburn loyalists, McNeill attributes much of the furor to the jealousy of conference rivals.

“It’s so competitive sometimes, especially down in the SEC,” McNeill said. “If (someone) feels like they can do anything or put a bug out there in the media somewhere that might explode, it might help cause distraction or disrupt what they’re doing over there at Auburn.”

There are certainly some elements of a smear campaign in the stories that have surfaced this week, particularly in the allegations that Newton left the University of Florida because of three incidents of academic cheating and not, as the player has claimed, because of his impatience at playing behind Tim Tebow. Leaking academic records violates federal law and seems an extreme step even by the SEC’s rough-and-tumble standards.

Yet to paint Newton as a victim is to pretend that the cheating allegations he hasn’t denied are out of character. During his sophomore year at Florida, Newton was charged with burglary, larceny and obstruction of justice in the theft of a Dell laptop that was tossed out a window upon the arrival of the police. Those charges were later dropped upon completion of a pretrial diversion program, but questions about his honesty are not so easily expunged.

Like Reggie Bush, Newton has responded to allegations of corruption with the sweeping assertion that he has done “nothing wrong.” To those who view college football’s labor force as being systematically exploited, seeking payment for enriching others might be rationalized as “nothing wrong” even when doing so runs contrary to NCAA rules. Since Newton has declined to address the issues in detail, the “nothing wrong” line has the ring of a lawyerly evasion rather than a blanket denial.

With the FBI involved, more answers may be forthcoming, but probably not on a timetable that leaves the bowls untouched. Should current BCS standings hold, Auburn could cost TCU a shot at the national title and deprive some conference of the $6 million payout for placing a second team in one of the five BCS bowl games. That said, Auburn still has to beat Georgia, Alabama and win the SEC Championship Game to ensure a spot in the Jan. 10 BCS Championship Game. A lot of things can still happen between now and Dec. 5, BCS Selection Sunday.

“There’s a lot of smoke, but there’s no fire at this point,” said Bruce Binkowski, executive director of San Diego’s Holiday and Poinsettia Bowls. “My guess is (Auburn) will be The Story, but it won’t cause a negative pall over the whole bowl year. History will tell you that (the case will be concluded) after the bowls. I just don’t know if the NCAA has ever moved that fast unless the school did some self-policing.”